Most of us set an alarm at the same time every day (and with the same tune, no less), eat the same oatmeal overnight for breakfast, and take the same route to and from work. Also, many of us do the same thing every time we exercise. But doing the exact same workout every day is not a good thing.
Why do you need to balance exercise and recovery?
Before getting to the explanation of why variety is the spice of exercise, you must first understand what exactly is happening to your body when you lift weights, run, or do a Zumba class, and also after you're done.
When you exercise, you are putting pressure on your body, from which you recover once you undo your shoes and take off your shorts. It is during downtime that your muscles repair and adapt, which is what allows you to be stronger and fitter.
If you skip to another workout before your body has fully recovered from the last one, you will disrupt your body's natural recovery process. Insufficient recovery can not only cause you to stabilize, it can also damage your tendons, ligaments, and joints, which can lead to injuries such as overuse.
Or worse yet: insufficient long-term recovery can lead to overtraining syndrome , which is essentially when the body enters a stage of chronic collapse.
The time it takes to recover properly after a workout depends on things like nutrition (especially protein intake!), Stress levels, sleep quality and quantity, age, workout age, and more. But as a general rule: the heavier, harder and more intense a workout is, the longer it takes for your body to recover.
Is it okay to exercise every day?
No. It is absolutely a bad idea to do the same workout seven days a week.
For starters, different workouts require different recovery times. For example, a 2010 study published in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance found that it takes 48 hours to recover from a bench press workout , while a 2016 study published in the Journal of Physical Therapy Science found it took 72 hours. to fully recover from sprint training.
Do the same exercise every day and you will give your body less than 24 hours to recover. Again, insufficient recovery can result in a general lack of progress toward your goals and / or injuries.
Well, what if I'm recovering properly between workouts? Ultimately, if you are doing a workout that is gentle enough for the body to be safe to do every day, that workout is not putting enough demand on the body to keep you fit.
What happens if you only exercise a few days a week?
What if you only exercise four or five days a week, but every time you do it, are you doing exactly the same workout? The answer does not change. Whether it's four days a week, or seven, if you do the same exercise every time you exercise, you 'll quickly reap diminishing returns on that exercise routine.
Beyond that, doing the same exercise every day is boring . Doing the same exercise every day is like traveling home from work every day, at a certain point everything is excluded because it is very tedious.
If you're spinning around weights or logging miles when your mind isn't on it, you're at the wrong step or a bad repeat to injure yourself. Also, exercising without being in the zone actually makes training less effective,
Take the deadlift for example. You may be able to support the weight without mental commitment, but if you lift without first supporting your core and squeezing your shoulder blades, you reduce the potential for muscle development from movement.
Can you do the same activity but not the same training?
What if you're really in love with running? Or are you really passionate about weight lifting? It's okay to do the same style of training every day, but not exactly the same workout.
Take running for example. If you run exactly the same route, at exactly the same pace every day, you will stabilize quickly. However, if your weekly race schedule alternates between fartlek, slopes, and tempo, varying distances and routes, you can quickly become a better runner.
However, ideally, your program doesn't just include execution. Someone who trains for a running career will become a better runner if their program includes yoga and strength training.
Another example: strength training . You can do strength or weight training every day, as long as you alternate the muscle groups you're working on. That allows you to rest one muscle group while working with the other. So if you do leg day on Monday, Tuesday, when you are aiming your back and biceps, your legs are recovering.
However, as with running, a balance of strength and cardio is optimal. Although strength training can be exhausting for your cardiovascular system, it is not the most efficient form of cardio. In general, most people are better off doing 15 to 20 minutes of more traditional cardio two to three days a week.
Can HIIT workouts be done every day?
This is the only activity you shouldn't do every day. True HIIT training should only be done, even by elite athletes, two or three times a week, with an emphasis on recovery in between. HIIT training four to five times a week for the average athlete can be extremely detrimental to achieving their goals.
HIIT, much more than low intensity exercises such as yoga, Pilates or jogging, damages muscle tissues and drains them of stored energy . Because there is more damage, it takes more time for proper recovery.
If you do a HIIT workout on Monday instead of the next day, we recommend doing a lower intensity workout. You cannot recover from one HIIT workout while doing another, but you can recover from it during a long walk. If walking isn't your thing, try biking, swimming, jogging, practicing gentle yoga, or tai chi.
In short, the best training routine is reduced to your goals. If you are a bodybuilder or a weight lifter training for the stage or a competition, your routine will look different from someone who is training for a marathon or someone who wants to be able to squat at 1.5 times body weight.
But for a normal athlete, two or four days of strength training is recommended (half days of the lower body, half days of the upper body), two days of cardiovascular training (think of running, cycling, doing elliptical exercises) and a day of what he calls "body movement training," which includes things like yoga, martial arts, dance, and tai chi.
